Specialist Training Program Initiative

Specialist Training Program (STP)

The Australian Government’s Specialist Training Program (STP) is a funding initiative to increase training posts for specialists outside traditional public teaching hospitals, including in rural, remote and private facilities.

ACSEP currently has funding until the end of 2020 to administer 4 STP Sport and Exercise Medicine posts in settings including private, rural and Aboriginal health settings.

Aims and Objectives:
The aims and objectives of the STP are detailed in the STP Operational Framework as follows:

enhance the capacity of the health care sector to provide high quality, appropriate training opportunities to facilitate the required educational experiences for specialists in training;

support quality training posts that build the overall training capacity in the system, by extending specialist training into new “expanded” healthcare settings; and

contribute to improving medical workforce distribution.

Eligibility
The following organisations are eligible to lodge an Expression of Interest for an STP registrar position (0.5FTE minimum):

Public and private hospitals

Local Health Networks and regional hospitals;

Private health care organisations/private health care settings;

Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services and Aboriginal Medical Services; and

Please note that while the above facilities are eligible to lodge an Expression of Interest, ACSEP has been directed by the Department of Health to fund posts in private settings during the current funding agreement.

Expression of Interest Process
The Department of Health holds Expression of Interest (EOI) rounds to allow eligible clinics to express interest in STP funding. If sites are found suitable, they can then be placed on the College’s reserve list. Funding may be transferred to clinics on the reserve list to meet distribution targets or if vacancies become available.

Current priority settings for Expressions of Interest include:

Private settings;

Regional, rural and remote areas (settings located in Australian Standard ASGS RA 2-5); and

Integrated Rural Training Pipeline (IRTP)

The Integrated Rural Training Pipeline (IRTP) initiative is an extension of the existing STP, specifically for rural sites. This involved the creation of 100 new training posts, across participating Colleges. ACSEP currently administers three IRTP training positions.

In addition to the STP aims and objectives, IRTP training also requires sites and registrars to meet the following criteria:

The Registrar must spend 66 per cent of the total Fellowship training time in a rural setting (ASGS - RA 2-5);

The training post must be accredited; and

The Registrar must demonstrate a commitment to working in a rural area.

IRTP Funding
IRTP positions are eligible to receive the following (per annum/per 1.0FTE):